In late April!

So not normal for around here. Between the weather and traveling for work I’m starting to think we’ll never get the garden in. If my travel schedule weren’t conspiring against me, I likely would have put up a cloche last weekend so that I could get some things seeded in the garden. But since I didn’t get home to the house until almost 4 pm  on Saturday after landing, picking upr necessaries at the co-op and stopping for 4″ pots at the nursery, I didn’t have time. Then Sunday we woke up to hail.

Yeah. Oh well. Instead of working in the garden I spent my shortened weekend painting inside the house. More on that tomorrow.

In the meantime, the seeds started indoors are starting to take over. Under the lights upstairs we’ve still got chives, peppers, silverbeet, Brussels sprouts and all kinds of lettuces. I was only going to direct seed lettuce, but with everything going on I thought I better get some going or we’d never have salads. As of this afternoon there’s now room for me to start the next round of broccoli and try my hand at starting some squash and cukes inside.

But what’s taking over is the stuff that’s too big for the 2″ starting pots but not yet able to go outside.

Some of this was potted up last weekend, the rest after work today. The herbs could all go outside, as could the artichokes, if it would just start being normal around here. As it is, here’s what’s under the south facing window in the living room (and on my nice sofa table I might add!).

20 tomato starts in 4 different varieties. They got a bit wet last week (Mike watered for me) but seem to be drying out and taking off again now.

8 artichoke plants in 2 varieties - 6 of one and 2 of the other due to uneven germination.

6 broccoli plants from a mixed seed packet.

And a full flat of herb starts: sage, basil, parsley, oregano and thyme. The rosemary and cilantro are already in the garden. The mint is still building momentum upstairs. The dill, dandelion and catnip will get direct seeded soon.